Tag Archives: Gallery wall

Don’t leave your photos languishing on your phone or laptop, create a fab focus wall of framed images and art that you can treasure – it only takes a couple of hours, perfect for a Bank Holiday weekend project!

Personal photos, favourite artwork and memorable treasures, from children’s drawings to concert tickets or a nostalgic football programme, can say so much about your personality and will breathe life into your home, when framed and hung on the walls.

A gallery wall of frames looks really effective and is easier to do than you might think. All you need is some paper and a pencil, a tape measure, hammer and spirit level, and an hour or two to get it right.

“One of the most common questions I get asked about gallery walls is ‘should all of my picture frames match?’,” says Kim Findlay, Frames and Wall Art Buyer for Habitat.

“Ultimately it is down to individual taste. Artwork in matching frames looks clean but for a more eclectic look, experimenting with mixing and matching styles and colours can be fun. If you’re unsure about which look to go for, consider the content of the frames. If the artwork or photography shares a similar style, matching frames work well. If you’re displaying different styles and mediums of artwork together, individual frames can be chosen based on what you’re putting inside them. This leads quite naturally to a mix-and-match style.”

1 – Don’t be afraid to mix things up: choose mismatching sizes and colours of frames for an eclectic feel, for instance, and don’t just create a geometric square pattern – a collage of frames can look much more interesting.

2 – Do think about making your pictures work as a group, still. Try theming the images – perhaps all family or holiday shots – or choosing all black and white shots to create a harmonious look. Or perhaps choose lots of shapes of frame but all in one colour.

3 – Don’t just start banging holes in the walls. Instead, lay the frames out on the floor in the arrangement that you are planning, spacing them around 10cm apart from one another. Keep moving things around until you are happy with the way it looks, then draw around each of the frames on paper and cut out paper templates, marking an “x” on each one where the nail should go.

4 – Do take time to get it right. Stick your paper templates on to the wall, following your design, making sure the centre of your arrangement sits at eye level. Use a spirit level and plumb line to check that they are all straight. Tweak your design if necessary. When you’re completely satisfied, nail into the crosses on the templates and then remove the paper. Hang your frames.

Ben de Lisi frame from Debenhams

5 – Do cheat. If you’re really struggling, you can now buy frames that create an instant picture wall. Try the 10-frame arrangement by Ben de Lisi from Debenhams (£45), The White Company’s Fine Memories wooden frame (£150) that holds 15 photos or buy Habitat’s 20-aperture mount (£15) in black or white that fits into a 60x80cm frame.

TIP: Photographs and prints tend to wrinkle if directly in contact with glass, so place them behind a mount to prevent them touching it. Tape them to the top of the back of the mount (using masking tape) so that the print then ‘hangs’ in the frame and it can expand and contract with humidity.

TYPES OF ARRANGEMENTS

Artwork and frames from Ikea

A gallery wall

Make a group of frames to create a focal point, above a sofa, fireplace or in a hallway. Choose a collage of mixed frames, a square or rectangle of equally-sized frames, or a row of frames – you can use different sizes here but keep them all centred so that there’s an imaginary equator running through the middle.

Here, all of your frames sit on the same base level, so it is really important to mix of up the sizes and shapes of the frames to keep things interesting. Layer them up in front of one another to create a textured, 3D, look, like this one above, from The White Company.

Stairs

A picture wall going up stairs can look really effective – the key to nailing the look is to start from the middle frame and work outwards, using the top and bottom of the central frame as a guide to work up/down the wall.

ALISON TYLER

This article first appeared in Metro on 28 April 2015

Related Posts

Don’t let boring furniture bring you down – with a bit of imagination and some elbow grease you can upcycle it into something amazing in no time. Try these design projects out... A Paul Klee-inspired dotty chest Chalk paint creator Annie Sloan was inspired to create this chest of drawers…

No one likes to admit they go to Ikea for their furniture, even though we all do. Now, savvy shoppers are pimping their Ikea pieces to create bespoke designs at bargain prices There’s no need to be embarrassed about buying furnishing your flat from Ikea – no one need ever…

Let leafy prints, fresh florals and gorgeous green velvets fill your home with a botanical vibe this spring, with the new M&S Home collection – I LOVE it... Buy the new collection online at Marks & Spencer now.

... without replacing your bath suite! Replacing a bathroom is a costly business, but you can transform the room you’ve got without changing the suite, for a fraction of the time and cost with these simple tips and tricks… 1 Change your towels If your bathroom features plain, greying white…

Want to know where to book for the year ahead? Read this ultimate family travel guide to where, and what, is going to be hot in 2015, from country weekends and mini breaks to holiday rentals and multi-generation escapes THE SMALL-INCLUSIVE Once all-inclusives meant ginormous resorts with bad buffets and dated entertainment, but in recent years … Continue reading Family holiday? Top travel trends 2015→

New for SpringSummer 2015 is this gorgeous wallpaper from Great Little Trading Company – a brilliant online interiors store that specialises in innovative, bright and fun children’s rooms and nursery furniture, homeware and interiors. Their first wallpaper collection of six colourful and bold designs is made right here in Great Britain and the wallpapers are … Continue reading Children’s wallpaper we love→

Farmer and foodie Jimmy Doherty, 39, is best known as the presenter of Food Unwrapped and one half of Jamie and Jimmy’s Food Fight Club, which he presents with his childhood friend Jamie Oliver. He lives on his farm in Suffolk with his wife Michaela and daughter Molly Rose, 4. Describe your kitchen to us… … Continue reading Inside Jimmy Doherty’s kitchen→

Thought après ski was just for the mountains? Think again, as a wave of pop-up winter-themed bars, cool cabins and chic chalets open across the UK just in time for the snowy season Pop-up Patagonian London’s Latin-inspired Floridita has opened the Soho Ski and Rum Chalet – an Argentinian-style ski lodge serving winter blends of … Continue reading Join the après party→

If you are feeling the need for a mid-week cleanse then NUTRiBULLET has the perfect recipe for you. Their in-house Nutritionist has put together the perfect antioxidant-packed blast that your heart and body will love.

Full of monounsaturated fatty acids from the avocado, shown to help lower our risk of heart disease, and antioxidants from blueberries, shown to help reduce the build-up of “bad” LDL cholesterol, this creamy concoction will keep your heart healthy and strong.